1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a facsimile system or other image communication system, or more particularly, to an image communication system equipped with an ink jet printer having multiple ink orifices.
2. Related Background Art
An ink jet printer has been developed recently, wherein bubbles generated with heat energy are utilized to discharge ink from orifices to a recorded material, and thus characters or images are recorded. In the printer, heat resistors (heaters) installed inside of the orifices are much smaller than piezoelectric elements used in a prior ink jet printer. Multiple orifices can be used in highly dense concentrations. This permits high-definition recording images and realizes high-speed and low-noise recording.
On the other hand, there is a demand for a facsimile system which can not only transmit images at high speed but also receive higher-definition images at high speed. Due to the above features, an ink jet printer which uses bubbles generated with heat energy to discharge ink to a recorded material would be one printer which can meet the demand.
This type of an ink jet printer discharges liquid ink with relatively low viscosity, fuses the ink droplets on a sheet, and thus records information. The ink must be well-fused on paper. However, ink cannot be fused onto paper naturally, and the sheet transport path is prolonged to ensure sufficient time for fusion. Otherwise, the printed portion may stain other portions of a sheet when they rubbed each other, which deteriorates image quality. The long fusing time becomes a serious obstacle in designing a more compact printer and allowing it to output multiple sheets at high speed. One countermeasure would be to apply heat or warm air to a printed sheet, thus facilitating fusion of ink. However, in realizing a facsimile system having a built-in ink jet printer, even if a fusing unit for applying heat to fuse ink is installed, it takes some time from when the fusing unit is energized until the temperature of the fusing unit rises to a proper given temperature. The time varies with the paper quality or the temperature of an ambient environment. If the fusing unit receives image data before the temperature reaches the given fusing temperature, ink stains may be created in a recorded portion.